Author's Note: This is all my personal opinion of pointe, and all of this is true.
Hi, this is Koalarox. I just got back from dance class today, and my foot in so much pain. I don't think lots of you know about pointe, and to tell the truth, I didn't know all that much. I still don't know EVERYTHING about it. I don't know where it was created, or why. I am just going to tell all of you future pointe dancers about the plusses and negatives.
What is Pointe?
Pointe is a style of dance, like jazz or tap. It basically is putting a block on the tippy toes of both feet and then putting all your weight on them. Pointe also has elastics and ribbons, which have to be in JUST the right place, or else you could fall down. Falling down is painful, and you also have a good chance of breaking your ankle, and can definitely break toes or get blisters. Today I actually got blisters on my old blisters. If you like quick paced dance, pointe and ballet in general is not for you.
Ribbons and Elastics
You could try to wear the pointe shoe without elastics or ribbons, which I did for a class or two. As soon as I put on the ribbons and elastics (a lot of sewing!) it really improved how well I went up. I stayed up without falling (as much) and was able to feel secure in the shoe. A shoe without ribbons looks like this:
A shoe WITH elastics and ribbons looks like this:
Positives on Pointe
Ever since I was little, I wanted to do pointe. Now it is my eleventh year, and I still love dance. I have done ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical and hip-hop. I thought pointe would be great. Some positives are that if you've wanted to go up on pointe for a while, and now you are allowed to do it, you'll enjoy it -- even when you're in pain. The place where I got my shoes said, "You're not a ballerina 'till your toes bleed." Many people think being a ballerina means blood, pain, broken toes. I think being a ballerina is just enjoying dance and doing ballet. If you think it will be fun to do pointe, however, I think you should do it. Otherwise, you'll always wonder.
Negatives of Pointe Boy
Where do I start? I love pointe. A lot. But the minute I took off my shoes, my feet were in so much pain. That's a big negative -- it's super painful. Also a negative -- blisters. They happen quickly on your toes over the joint so it hurts to wear any types of shoes. You can also break your toes, or your ankles on pointe.
Overall
Practice, practice, practice! If you try really hard, you'll improve. Always use a type of padding, either a gel pad or Lamb's Wool for your toes. The padding fits over your toes, into the box of the shoe. Also be careful, but try your best. Listen to your teacher on EXACTLY how to do the steps, because you might keep doing the same things over and over incorrectly.
This is Koalarox, signing off to do homework (but not pointe, my toes hurt too muchL)
